I actually watched it when it was on FOX back in the day, but that was back in the days before DVRs and when FOX began screwing around with the order the shows were played, making it more and more difficult to follow the plotlines, I admit I gave up. A nephew who had a DVD set kept raving about how great it was, and then I saw Serenity in the theatre and immediately went out and bought the set myself.

Mind-blowing characters and story, and as a Trekkie fan, I was totally intrigued at the concept of a "rebel faction" in their equivalent of Trek's "United Federation of Planets". Got me to thinking that what if all the star systems Kirk, Picard and Janeway visited didn't WANT to join the Federation? Imposing civilization and order, as the government did in the grittier Serenity universe, rather than in the sanitized Trek 'verse, was not something that outworld settlers wanted.

Whedon's brilliance is that he showed what the future will probably be - ordinary people, struggling and sometime having to steal to exist.

Well, as i'm sure he'd be the first to admit, Joss was far from the first to depict a gritty, borderline dystopic future (not in film/TV and certainly not in sci-fi in general - i'd recommend Allen Steele's 'rude astronauts' books for a great depiction of ordinary working people in space, much nearer future than 'Firefly' though) but he certainly did a great job of it.

There were several Trek episodes featuring non-Federation worlds (because they were too primitive to be allowed to join) sometimes even showcasing the damage caused when a very advanced culture meets one that's less so though I can't recall any where a world was asked and refused, that would've been interesting.

'Deep Space 9' developed into the least sanitised Trek incarnation, certainly later on with the introduction of Section 31 (more or less a sort of secret police that would probably have found a use for someone like The Operative) and by showing us how the Federation might be forced to change if it was ever caught up in a long term "hot" war.

I like both types personally, the (probably more realistic) grit and hand-to-mouth struggle of the 'Firefly' style and the grand optimism of the Roddenberry vision, wouldn't be without either.

(and I guess that's the sole point of interest for 'Firefly' still being on TV - new fans can see it and become smitten)

Riverine, I second Saje's suggestion on Deep Space 9...in it, Bajor eventually DID refuse admission into the Federation. It was actually a pretty major plot point. Sisko was sent there to help Bajor into the Federation, and the early episodes feature a lot of trying to push the application through. When they are accepted, they are advised to not join (it's a really interesting story arc, so I won't spoil it, despite the show being very old).

Man, I loved DS9. There are lots of complex characters (Sisko, Dukat and surprisingly Nog come to mind. And, of course Garak!) and plots subverting almost everything you take for granted about Star Trek. If you watch one episode, "In The Pale Moonlight" is absolutely not to be missed.

Back on topic, Firefly and DS9 compliment each other well in lots of ways. Too bad Firefly didn't get another 6 seasons :-(

...Bajor eventually DID refuse admission into the Federation. It was actually a pretty major plot point.

I'd totally forgotten about that, good catch narse.

(though it's not quite what we were talking about since - Google reminds me ;) - Bajor asked to join and Sisko advised them against it for their own sake whereas the idea mentioned - and AFAIK unseen on Trek - was the Federation approaching a world, offering them a place and the world refusing)

And yep, "In the Pale Moonlight", great ep. And before that we'd had 'Rocks and Shoals', 'Favour the Bold/Sacrifice of Angels' and one of my favourite episodes of sci-fi ever, 'Far Beyond the Stars'. Was season 6 the best ? Hard to say but it's surely up there.

Without violating the Non Disclosure Agreement I signed when I joined the company, I know that Discovery Science is a pay-for add-on for Bell TV in Canada. Discovery Channel period is an add-on as well, but through a different subscription option.

oooh, "Far Beyond The Stars", good call! I'm also very fond of season seven's "Siege of AR-558" and "It's Only A Paper Moon".

And you are right, Bajor did try to join, and only pulled out after they were accepted. Perhaps a stronger Firefly parallel would be the Maquis, though they weren't strictly anti-Federation, just pissed that they were sold out to the Cardassians. Our Friend Wikipedia has a great quote from "For the Cause":

"Everybody should want to be in the Federation. Nobody leaves paradise. In some ways, youíre even worse than the Borg. At least they tell you about their plans for assimilation. You assimilate people and they donít even know it."

Fantastic promo. Also, I am onboard for the DS9 love, which became the best Trek by far over the course of the series. Episodes like "Far Beyond the Stars" are exactly why. Brililant television. Makes me all the more sad we didn't get a couple more seasons of Captain Tightpants and co.

When marketing and creative really get what something is about, and unite to promote it properly... ahhh, beautiful thing. An excellent recent example is the "Friday Death Slot" promo Fox did when Fringe moved. It made me realize you can't slag Fox for improper promotion all the time -- sometimes they totally nail it. Just like Discovery Science nails it here.

If you look down at the bottom of the discoverychannel.ca page (under "CTV Network") you'll see a link to Discovery Science, which is the channel running 'Firefly' (in the US Discovery Science is just called the Science Channel).

(which isn't to say it'll necessarily air in Canada/elsewhere BTW - it's the same channel but with slightly different content in different places. The UK Discovery Channel still shows 'Mythbusters' for instance but with an English narrator)